Atlanta Braves Thread - The "John Hart/ John Coppollela da real MVPs" Edition

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#7,002
#7,002
GAVol said:
At some point there's got to be something to build around. I just think dumping Kimbrell, Freeman or Teheran is a mistake.
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I agree about Freeman and Teheran, but a great closer on a bad team is a wasted asset. Maybe I'd feel differently about Kimbrel if the Braves didn't have such a miserable history burning through relief pitchers, because there's at least a 50-50 chance he ends up in Dr. Andrews's office anyway. I wouldn't trade him just for the sake of trading him, but if I could trade him to a contender for a five-star prospect? In a heartbeat.
 
#7,007
#7,007
The rotation is competitive... the offense. What, finished second to last in runs last year? ...and traded away three of the top bats. The offense this season is going to be painful.

You have to make the best of it though. Soon as your down by three in the second, you just freed up some time to do something else that evening w/o worrying you will miss anything.
 
#7,008
#7,008
vols 30 said:
Damn, there's a lot of hate in here tonight .
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It has nothing to do with hate. I think Kimbrel is fantastic. I just don't know that a great closer is a luxury a bad team can afford, like a family who's facing bankruptcy from medical bills refusing to sell their Maserati. If they have a chance to turn him into a great hitting prospect they should do it before Fredi burns his arm out.
 
#7,010
#7,010
Vercingetorix said:
It has nothing to do with hate. I think Kimbrel is fantastic. I just don't know that a great closer is a luxury a bad team can afford, like a family who's facing bankruptcy from medical bills refusing to sell their Maserati. If they have a chance to turn him into a great hitting prospect they should do it before Fredi burns his arm out.
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I see your point. My Unrealistic February expectations for the Braves might be messing with me.
 
#7,011
#7,011
Vercingetorix said:
It has nothing to do with hate. I think Kimbrel is fantastic. I just don't know that a great closer is a luxury a bad team can afford, like a family who's facing bankruptcy from medical bills refusing to sell their Maserati. If they have a chance to turn him into a great hitting prospect they should do it before Fredi burns his arm out.
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I think the save is the most overrated stat in baseball BUT if nothing else I still think from a PR standpoint that unloading the best closer in the game while you still have contract certainty is the wrong message to send to your paying customers.
 
#7,012
#7,012
GAVol said:
I think the save is the most overrated stat in baseball BUT if nothing else I still think from a PR standpoint that unloading the best closer in the game while you still have contract certainty is the wrong message to send to your paying customers.
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Possibly, but I think any Braves fans that have even remotely paid attention this offseason are already fully aware that the front office has made the decision to be non-competitive for the next several years.
 
#7,013
#7,013
bleedorange0037 said:
Possibly, but I think any Braves fans that have even remotely paid attention this offseason are already fully aware that the front office has made the decision to be non-competitive for the next several years.
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I disagree. Fans understand taking a step back for a year or two where they scare .500 and win 70-75. They don't understand a perennial contender becoming the Houston Astros overnight. They have to remain at least slightly relevant and not go the full on AAAA.
 
#7,015
#7,015
NochNoch said:
On a team that will struggle mightily to score runs, and that's probably even an understatement, does Kimbrel really even help with that?
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He'll still shorten games and keep them merely bad and not completely awful.

I totally get what you're saying. In the scheme of things, he doesn't matter in 2015, but he will again in 16 and 17 when they move to the new park. I just think you have to give the fans some semblance of hope. Plus, that contract is OK. I think it's something like $10-12M thru 17 or 18.
 
#7,016
#7,016
GAVol said:
He'll still shorten games and keep them merely bad and not completely awful.

I totally get what you're saying. In the scheme of things, he doesn't matter in 2015, but he will again in 16 and 17 when they move to the new park. I just think you have to give the fans some semblance of hope. Plus, that contract is OK. I think it's something like $10-12M thru 17 or 18.
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Yeah, I'm not saying it's a must do and the fan in me doesn't really want it to happen but if it happens, and IF they get some pieces to help restock the farm system, I can't really be all that upset about it.
 
#7,017
#7,017
NochNoch said:
Yeah, I'm not saying it's a must do and the fan in me doesn't really want it to happen but if it happens, and IF they get some pieces to help restock the farm system, I can't really be all that upset about it.
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I wouldn't either. If I weathered the trade of Dale Murphy, I can take anything. I'm just looking at it from a marketing perspective.
 
#7,018
#7,018
GAVol said:
I disagree. Fans understand taking a step back for a year or two where they scare .500 and win 70-75. They don't understand a perennial contender becoming the Houston Astros overnight. They have to remain at least slightly relevant and not go the full on AAAA.
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If I thought it was only a year then I'd want to keep Kimbrel. But there's only one decent hitter on the team anymore, and he only gives you .285/20 HRs. There isn't another quality bat anywhere in the organization. The Braves don't bring in difference makers in free agency. The offense is going to be inadequate for the foreseeable future.

I understand the marketing perspective, but surely any fans who still watch baseball at this point understand that a closer isn't the difference between being relevant or not. If anything has taken hold in American sports, it's the belief that sometimes you first have to get worse in order to get better.
 
#7,020
#7,020
Atlanta could potentially be players in free agency next winter and contending again as soon as 2016. That's why they keep Kimbrel unless the Cubs called and offered Kris Bryant and Jorge Soler.
 
#7,021
#7,021
Vercingetorix said:
I understand the marketing perspective, but surely any fans who still watch baseball at this point understand that a closer isn't the difference between being relevant or not. If anything has taken hold in American sports, it's the belief that sometimes you first have to get worse in order to get better.
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Never underestimate a fan's ability to only think in one dimension.
 
#7,023
#7,023
Regulator said:
Atlanta could potentially be players in free agency next winter and contending again as soon as 2016. That's why they keep Kimbrel unless the Cubs called and offered Kris Bryant and Jorge Soler.
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Id streak through Siberia naked to sign a deal for one of them
 
#7,025
#7,025
If Kimbrel was still under a true rookie deal, I'd say keep him. But with that long contract, you're one pitch away from having a bad deal especially at closer with a cash strapped organization. Imagine it's 2017 and the rebuild is going great and we are one bat away from being a really solid team and we can go get one in FA....but Kimbrel is on the shelf with TJ eating up $13M of our payroll.

I love Kimbrel. He's the best reliever in the game. But if you are going to rebuild do it completely. Especially since the organization always can develop bullpen arms. If Kimbrel netted me a prospect that would be a top five guy in our farm, I'd do it in a second.
 
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